JPH0455664B2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to a fruit processing device suitable for peeling and simultaneously coreping citrus fruits such as grapefruits, oranges, and summer mandarin oranges. be.

[Prior Art] Various fruit processing apparatuses have been proposed that automatically peel and core not only citrus fruits but also various fruits.

In such processing equipment, once the fruit is attached to the machine in order to peel or core the fruit, the necessary processing can be carried out sequentially without touching the fruit. It is desirable to do so, and processing apparatuses that take such points into consideration are already known, for example, from Japanese Patent Publication No. 7512/1983.

However, including the device described in the above publication,
Conventionally known fruit processing devices are equipped with means for sequentially moving the holding position of fruit to the next processing position such as peeling or coring in order to perform multiple processing. They usually have very complicated mechanisms for this purpose.

[Problem to be Solved by the Invention] The technical problem of the present invention is that once the fruit is attached to the machine, it can not only be peeled but also cored and both ends removed while the fruit is kept in that attached state. To obtain a fruit processing device having a relatively simple mechanism so as to cut and remove the stem part at once.

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to solve the above problems, the fruit processing device of the present invention includes a clamp rotation mechanism for holding and rotating the stem portions at both ends of the fruit, and a clamp rotation mechanism for holding and rotating the stem portions at both ends of the fruit. The clamp rotation mechanism is equipped with a core removal device for removing the core, a both-end cutting device for cutting both ends including the stem of the fruit, and a cutter device for peeling the fruit. A pair of clamp members having protrusions inserted into the hem portions of the upper and lower ends of the class are arranged in an opposing state, and a pair of rotating shafts are supported such that these clamp members can rotate on the same axis and can move forward and backward. The coring device is constructed by slidably inserting a cylindrical tube having a cylindrical coring blade at its tip into one rotation shaft of the clamp rotation mechanism. The above-mentioned double-end cutting device is constructed by attaching a cutting blade capable of cutting into fruits rotated by a clamp rotation mechanism so as to be slidable in the axial direction in conjunction with both rotation shafts of the clamp rotation mechanism. , the cutter device is movable along the surface of the fruit as it is rotated by the clamp rotation mechanism in a relative positional relationship such that the peeling blade contacts the surface of the fruit from the outside and cuts into the fruit. It is configured by arranging the

[Operation] While holding and rotating both ends of the fruit using the clamp rotation mechanism, the peeling blade cuts from the surface of the fruit, and at the same time, when the peeling blade is moved along the outer skin of the fruit, the peeling blade makes a cut. You can peel the entire fruit.

Coring of fruits with a coring device is performed by pushing the corer blade at the tip of the cylindrical tube into the fruit while it is held in the clamp rotation mechanism, and cutting the stems at both ends of the fruit. In this case, the cutting blade of the double-end cutting device can be cut into the fruits that are held and rotated by the clamp rotation mechanism.

To cut both ends of fruits, the cutting blade that cuts into the fruit is attached so that it can move in the axial direction in conjunction with both rotating shafts of the clamp rotation mechanism, so the positional relationship between the clamp member and the cutting blade can be adjusted in advance. By setting the cutting blade appropriately, when the pair of clamp members holds the fruit, the cutting blade is arranged at an appropriate cutting position for the fruit, regardless of the size of the fruit.

Through such processing, only the pulp part that is used for human consumption can be taken out. Furthermore, the three processing steps of peeling, coring, and cutting both ends can be carried out all at once while the fruit is held in a fixed position with a single clamp, so there is no need to touch the fruit during this process. Hygienic.

[Example] Figures 1 to 4 show examples of the fruit processing apparatus of the present invention.

The main parts of this processing device are a clamp rotation mechanism 1 for holding and rotating the stems at both ends of fruits A, and a coring device 4 for removing the core of fruits.
, a double-end cutting device 5 for cutting both ends including the stem part of fruits, and a cutter device 6 equipped with a peeling blade and a moving mechanism for moving the peeling blade along the fruit skin. .

The clamp rotation mechanism 1 is used to hold both ends of fruits A, especially the top and bottom ends of citrus fruits, etc., and rotate them for peeling. A pair of clamp members 11 and 12, which are arranged opposite to each other on the frame 10, are attached to opposite ends of a pair of rotating shafts 13 and 14, which are supported by the machine frame 10 so as to be rotatable and movable back and forth on the same axis. The clamp members 11 and 12 are
A plurality of protrusions 11a and 12 are inserted into the opposing surfaces to a depth necessary for holding the fruits A, respectively.
A is provided.

The rotary shafts 13 and 14, which are equipped with these clamp members 11 and 12 and can move forward and backward, are provided with grooves 15 and 16 around their peripheries at positions near their opposing ends.As shown in detail in FIG. Shift member 1
Pins 19, 19 provided opposite to each other are fitted into the bifurcated portion 17a at the tip of 7. Further, at the other end of this shift member 17, a device 5 for cutting both ends of fruits A, which will be described later, is provided. Note that the other rotating shaft 1
The shift member 18 that engages with the groove 16 of No. 4 also has the same configuration as above.

As can be seen from FIGS. 1 to 3, the intermediate portions of the shift members 17 and 18 are rotatably supported in elongated holes provided at the upper ends of the shift levers 20 and 21. The shift levers 20 and 21 are
Their base ends are connected to the machine frame 1 by support shafts 22 and 23.
connection plates 24 and 25 that are rotatably attached to
The connecting plates 24 and 25 are rotatable on both sides of the shaft 26 on a protruding arm 28 integrated with a clamp lever 27 rotatably mounted on the machine frame 10 around a shaft 26. It is installed.

Therefore, in FIG.
When the shift lever 2 is rotated around the shaft 26 in the direction of the arrow, the pair of shift levers 2 are moved by the connecting plates 24 and 25.
0 and 21 are driven to tilt toward the center, and the shift members 17 and 18 are moved accordingly, causing the pair of clamp members 11 and 12 to advance to the center, and the fruit part A is moved to the horizontal center of the rotation. If the fruits are held between the clamp members 11 and 12 so as to match the axes of the rotating shafts 13 and 14, the fruit will be clamped between both the clamp members 11 and 12.

A motor 30 for rotating one of the rotary shafts 13 is attached to the machine frame 10, and the rotary shaft 13 is decelerated and driven by the motor 30 via a gear train. However, the gear 31 on the rotating shaft 13 needs to slide on the rotating shaft 13 as the rotating shaft 13 advances and retreats in the axial direction, so there is always a gear 31 on the rotating shaft 13 regardless of its sliding position. A key 32 that engages with the gear 31 is provided, and the gear is slidably supported on the rotating shaft 13.

Therefore, regardless of the sliding positions of the rotating shafts 13 and 14, both clamp members 1 are rotated by the rotation of the motor 30.
Fruits A clamped between 1 and 12 rotate,
The rotating shaft 14 is driven to rotate accordingly.

The centering device 4 is attached to the rotating shaft 14 supported by the machine frame 10. That is, the rotation axis 1
A cylindrical tube 40 having a cylindrical coring blade 41 at its tip and a handle 42 at its outer end is slidably inserted into the inside of the tube 4 . An extrusion rod 43 is provided inside this cylindrical tube 40 and is located on the fruit holding side of the cylindrical tube 40 in the retracted position of the cylindrical tube 40 as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.
is fixed to a support base 46 of the machine frame 10 with screws 44. Therefore, the cylindrical tube 40 is provided with an elongated hole 45 to avoid interference caused by the screw 44 when the cylindrical tube 40 advances and retreats in the axial direction.

According to this coring device 4, the cylindrical tube 40 is pushed in using the handle 42, and the coring blade 41 is inserted into the fruit A.
The core of the fruit can be cut by pushing it against the fruit, and when the cylindrical tube 40 is pulled out from the fruit by pulling the handle 42, the extrusion rod 43
The cut core is extruded from the cylindrical tube 40.

As can be seen from FIGS. 1 and 3, the double-end cutting device 5 provided in association with the shift members 17 and 18 has cutting blades driven together with the rotating shafts 13 and 14 by the shift members 17 and 18. 52,
53 supports 50, 51 are slidably supported on a guide rotation shaft 54, and the shift members 17, 1 are inserted into grooves 55, 56 provided on the outer periphery of the supports 50, 51.
Projecting pieces 17b and 18b provided at the ends of 8 are inserted. Further, the guide rotation shaft 54 is rotatably supported by the machine frame 10, a handle 57 is fixedly attached to the guide rotation shaft 54, and the cutting blades 52, 53 and their supports 50, 51 are slidably mounted. Although it is possible, it is installed so that it does not rotate. Thus, the cutting blades 52 and 53 on the guide rotation shaft 54
The attachment position corresponds to the slightly inside of the protrusions 11a and 12a provided on the clamp members 11 and 12 for piercing fruits. Note that the spring 58 is used to keep the guide support shaft 54 at the return position at all times.

Therefore, the clamp lever 27 drives the pair of shift levers 20 and 21 to tilt toward the center, and the shift members 17 and 18 move the pair of clamp members 11 and 12 toward the center to move the fruit A.
When clamping the support body 5, the cutting blades 52, 53
The cutting blades 52 and 53 are positioned slightly inside the clamp members 11 and 12 which are always in the fruit holding position, and the fruit is rotated by the motor 30. When the guide rotation shaft 54 is rotated by the handle 57 against the biasing force of the spring 58 while the cutting blade 5 is
2 and 53 are held by the clamp members 11 and 12 to cut both ends of the rotating fruit.

The cutter device 6 for peeling fruits A supported by a pair of clamp members 11 and 12 in the clamp rotation mechanism 1 includes a cup-shaped rotary peeling blade 61 and a cup-shaped rotary peeling blade 61, as shown in FIGS. The peeling blade support 60 includes a drive device (motor) 62 for rotationally driving the peeling blade support 60, and a moving mechanism for supporting the peeling blade support 60 and moving the peeling blade 61 along the fruit skin.

That is, the rotary peeling blade 61 has a structure in which a blade is provided around the entire circumference of the mouth of the cup-shaped blade, and a rotating shaft protrudes from the bottom surface of the cup-shaped blade in a direction opposite to the blade. The mouth of the cup-shaped peeling blade 61 is arranged in a completely open state in order to continuously discharge the peeled skin, and the peeling blade support 6
It is rotatably supported at 0. Further, the driving device 62 is fixed to the peeling blade support 60, and a belt 63 is wound between the two, so that the peeling blade 61 can be rotated at high speed.

The peeling blade support 60 to which such a peeling blade 61 and drive device 62 are attached includes a support arm 6 rotatably supported around a shaft 65 with respect to the machine frame 10.
4 so that the position can be adjusted. The support arm 64 consists of a horizontal portion 64a and a rising portion 64b attached to the tip of the horizontal portion 64a.
In order to prevent fruit skins discharged as waste from being cut by the peeling blade 61 from falling into the chute below, the support arm 64 is curved sideways and has a raised portion 64b at its tip. , guide support rods 66, 66 for supporting the peeling blade support 60 in a position-adjustable manner are horizontally projected.

The peeling blade support 60 is provided with convex walls 67, 67 on the lower surface thereof, each having a hole through which the guide support rods 66, 66 are slidably inserted, and on the upper surface of the peeling blade support 60. A knob 68 equipped with an operator 70 for operating a switch 69 of a drive device 62 is provided at the center, and is tightened at an arbitrary position in a long hole 71 in a direction perpendicular to the sliding direction of the peeling blade support 60. A knob 73 for fixing the fixable contact element 71 is provided. The abutting element 72 is the rising portion 6 of the support arm.
It comes into contact with the slope 75a of the stopper 75 provided at the upper end of the blade 4b to regulate the sliding of the peeling blade support 60 on the guide support rods 66, 66. The position of the peeling blade 61 when the contact element 72 is brought into contact with the slope 75a of the stopper 75 is adjusted depending on whether the contact element 72 is fixed at a certain position.

Therefore, the contact piece 72 is fixed in advance at an appropriate position in the elongated hole 71 by the knob 73, and the peeling blade support 60 is moved to the guide supports 66, 6 by grasping the knob 68.
6 until the abutting element 72 abuts against the stopper 75, and in that state, remove the peeling blade support 6.
0 is rotated by a support arm 64 rotatably supported on a shaft 65 on the machine frame 10, the peeling blade 6
1 moves along the epidermis of fruits and can peel them.

Fruits vary in size, shape, skin thickness, etc., and it is therefore necessary to operate the peeling blade 61 in accordance with these changes. Peeling blade support 6
0 along the guide support rods 66, 66 to the position where the abutment element 72 abuts the stopper 75, the shaft 65 supporting the support arm 64
The rotation radius of the peeling blade 61 around the peeling blade 61 is changed to correspond to the size of fruits, etc., and the shaft 65 is mounted on a crosshead (not shown), and the shaft 65 to which the support arm 64 is attached is attached to the machine frame 1.
By making it movable back and forth, left and right with respect to 0, the peeling blade 61 can be given movement according to the shape of the fruit.

The cup-shaped peeling blade 61 is driven by a drive device 62.
The peeling blade 61 is rotated around its central axis, and the axis is parallel to the tangent to the rotation locus of the surface of the fruit A being rotated while being held by the clamp member, and the outer circumferential surface of the peeling blade 61 is The fruit is rotated in the direction of the arrow in a relative position such that the peeling blade contacts the surface of the fruit from the outside and cuts into the fruit, and more preferably, the fruit is rotated with the cup facing downward. Cut the epidermis of A. When the peeling blade 61 is brought into contact with the surface of the fruit in this way, the cutting edge of the peeling blade that cuts the skin of the fruit will always move in the direction of the ridgeline of the cutting edge and come into contact with the skin. Therefore, the skin of fruits, which is relatively difficult to cut, can be easily cut. Furthermore, when the rotary blade 61 is rotated with the cup facing downward, the cut skin turns over and falls downward, making it easier to dispose of the scraps.

When peeling a spherical fruit such as a citrus fruit, the above-mentioned fruit processing device first transfers the fruit between the clamp members 11 and 12 of the clamp rotation mechanism 1 using an appropriate fruit supply mechanism or the like. The fruits are held based on the outer periphery and stem, and then peeled by moving the cup-shaped rotary peeling blade 61 of the cutter device 6 along the epidermis while rotating the fruit by the rotating shaft 13. The core is removed by pushing the corer blade 41 at the tip of the cylindrical tube 40 of the corer device 4 into the fruit, and the cutting blades 52 and 53 of the both end cutting device 5 cut both ends of the fruit. . As a result, only the edible pulp portion can be taken out.
Moreover, since the outer periphery, core, and both ends of the fruit can be peeled and cut in three steps with one clamp, there is no need to touch the fruit during this process, making it extremely hygienic.

In addition, during the above-mentioned core removal, the core removal blade 14 is stopped before it reaches the epidermis on the rotating shaft 13 side, and furthermore, when cutting both ends of the fruit with the cutting pieces 52 and 53 of the both-end cutting device 5, the core removal blade 14 is completely cut. By not cutting, the core remains integrated with the chips cut by the both-end cutting device 5, and can be easily separated from the solid.

The above-described fruit processing apparatus can be adapted to handle fruits of a wide range of shapes and sizes by controlling the movement of the rotary blade, changing the diameter of the corer blade, adjusting the interval between the cutting blades, and the like.

[Effects of the Invention] As detailed above, according to the fruit processing apparatus of the present invention, when peeling fruits, once the fruits are attached to the machine, the fruit can be left as it is, and the fruit can be peeled. Instead, it is possible to remove the core and cut and remove the stalks at both ends at the same time, thereby allowing only the edible pulp to be taken out.

What's more, with a single clamp, the three processing steps of peeling, coring, and cutting both ends can be carried out sequentially while holding the fruit in a fixed position, without having to touch it with your hands during this process. Therefore, it is extremely hygienic, and at the same time, the mechanism is extremely simple because the holding position of fruits does not need to be changed sequentially for multiple processing steps.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing an embodiment of the fruit processing apparatus according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the same,
FIG. 3 is a sectional view of the same side, and FIG. 4 is a sectional view of the cutter device. 1... Clamp rotation mechanism, 4... Coring device,
5...Both ends cutting device, 6...Cutter device, 1
1, 12... Clamp member, 11a, 12a...
Convex element, 13... Rotating shaft, 40... Cylindrical pipe, 41...
Coring blade, 52, 53...Cutting blade, 61...Peeling blade.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. Includes a clamp rotation mechanism for holding and rotating the stems at both ends of fruits, a coring device for removing the core of fruits, and a stem part of fruits. The clamp rotation mechanism is equipped with a double-end cutting device for cutting both ends and a cutter device for peeling the fruit, and the clamp rotation mechanism includes a pair of protrusions that are inserted into the stems of the upper and lower ends of the fruit. The centering device is constructed by arranging clamp members facing each other and attaching these clamp members to opposite ends of a pair of rotating shafts that are rotatably and movably supported on the same axis. It is constructed by slidably inserting a cylindrical tube having a cylindrical coring blade at the tip into one of the rotation shafts of the rotation mechanism, and the above-mentioned double-end cutting device cuts the fruits rotated by the clamp rotation mechanism. A cutting blade that can cut into
The cutter device is constructed by being attached so that it can slide in the axial direction in conjunction with both rotating shafts in the clamp rotation mechanism, and the peeling blade contacts the surface of the fruit that is rotated by the clamp rotation mechanism from the outside. 1. A fruit processing device characterized in that the device is configured to be movable along the surface of the fruit in a relative positional relationship such that it cuts into the fruit.